For All Time - Part One
by RasberryGirl
Summary: Sequel to Never Let Go, Jake and Cassie marry and the Andalites come.


**Prologue**

We had been fighting the Yeerks for a little over four years, and we didn't even know if they were still coming. But we kept fighting, hoping against hope that it wasn't all in vain.

It was the summer when we were all 18 when Cassie and I got married. I remember that day just like it was yesterday. Actually, it was. It just seems like so much more than that. You see, something else happened that changed our lives forever.

The Andalites came.

**Chapter One**  
_ (Cassie)_

"This dress doesn't feel right," I said, adjusting my veil. Jake and I were getting married, and we had five minutes before the ceremony would start. 

Rachel finished fixing the flowers in my bouquet and turned to me. 

Cassie, I don't think you'd feel right in any dress. And anyway, you're beautiful!" she exclaimed. 

I was wearing a long, silk sleeveless gown with elegant white gloves. I had let my hair grow to a little past chin length, and it hung around my neck in loose curls. I never would have gone for a look like that, but Rachel insisted. 

"You don't look so bad yourself," I replied.

Rachel was my maid of honor. She was wearing a long navy blue slipdress, with shoes the same color. Her hair was in an elaborate french twist.

"Let me get that," said Rachel, quickly fixing the veil. 

I tried to calm myself down. Rachel gave me a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, Cassie, you'll do fine," she told me. I gave her a hug.

"Thanks, Rachel. This means a lot to me," I said to her. Then my mom and Nikki walked in. They had both been a little apprehensive when Jake and I announced our engagement, and they even tried to talk us out of getting married so young But after they realized that what Jake and I had was real, they were both just happy for us. 

"Cassie, you look wonderful," said Nikki. I smiled, and gave her a small hug.

"It's going to be nice having a daughter," she told me.

"Thanks, mom," I said. Nikki smiled. Beside me, my mom wiped away a tear. 

"My little girl's about to get married," she said, her voice wavering slightly. My mom usually wasn't this emotional. She held me in her arms and I gave her a reassuring squeeze. "Don't worry, I'll be okay," I told her. Just then Sara and Natalie came running in. 

"Tom says it's time!" screeched Sara. "Yeah, come on!" added Natalie. Natalie's my five year old cousin, and Sara is Rachel's youngest siser. 

I adjusted my veil again one more time, and followed Rachel and the two little girls out of the room.

**Chapter Two**  
_ (Jake)_

"Ready to get married?" asked Marco. He was my best man, along with Tom. 

I actually didn't want Tom to be there at all, but it would have looked strange if my own brother didn't come to my wedding.

"I hope so," I replied, adjusting my collar for the hundredth time. Marco saw me. 

"Jake, man, calm down," he told me. I didn't answer. I was nervous, but that wasn't really what was bothering me.

"Is it because of the funeral?" he asked tentatively. The church Cassie and were getting married in was the one my family went to almost every Sunday, but it was also the one where Cassie's funeral had been held. 

Nobody else remembered it but us, so it didn't really effect anyone in mine or Cassie's families. 

"Yeah," I replied. 

I remembered all the painful memories of that day, but quickly pushed them away. Cassie is alive and well, I told myself.

"He won't try it again," Marco told me. 

I knew he was right, so I let my paranoid thoughts subside. I started fiddling with my collar again.

"I also have this weird feeling, like something big is gonna happen," I said. Marco rolled his eyes. 

"Yeah, you're getting married, duh," he said

sarcastically. Before I could reply, John and my dad walked in the room. 

"I can't believe my youngest son is getting married," he said, his eyes a little watery. I gave him a quick hug and he patted me on the back. 

"Come on dad, I'm not disappearing from the face of the Earth," I told him. He nodded. 

"I know, Jake. You've just grown up so fast," he said. More than you'll ever know, I thought. John turned to me.

"I want you to take care of her. She's my only daughter," he told me, and I nodded. 

"I will," I said, and he patted me on the shoulder. Tom peered inside the room.

"It's time to get married, midget," he said lightly. I kept myself from scowling at him, and nodded.

"Thanks, Tom." 

My dad and John took their seats in the front row, and Marco and I took ours on one side of the pulpit. The string quartet and organ music started. Marco leaned over to whisper in my ear. 

"Nervous?" he asked. I nodded slightly. 

"Yeah."

Sara and Natalie walked down the aisle in their identical flower girl dresses, throwing rose petals on the carpet. Everyone smiled at them and commented on how cute they were. They both stood on the other side of the altar. 

Then Rachel and Tom came down the aisle, their arms linked. I could see a slight frown on Rachel's face, and she immediately looked happier as soon as they parted at the end of the aisle. 

Finally, I saw everyone turned around to see Cassie. She was slowly walking down the aisle, a wide smile on her face. She was so beautiful. I've never seen her look so happy in my life; she was practically glowing. I had to blink twice to make sure I wasn't dreaming. 

People snapped pictures and exclaimed over the dress, but I was speechless. I know I must've had a big, goofy grin on my face, because Marco quietly snickered . 

Finally, Cassie made it to the front of the altar. She smiled at me, and I felt my heart skip a beat. I took her arm around mine, and we faced the Reverend. "We are gathered here today in the house of the Lord to witness Jacob __________ and Cassandra _________join together in holy matrimony. Today, these two young souls will start their lives anew as one. If anyone has any objections, say something now, or forever hold your peace," he said. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ax open his mouth to say something, but Tobias quickly placed his hand over his mouth. Rachel rolled her eyes, and the Reverend continued. 

"Jacob and Cassandra have decided to exchange their own vows," he said, and then gave us both an encouraging smile. I took in a deep breath, and looked into Cassie's beautiful eyes.

"Cassie, I fell in love with you the very first time I laid my eyes on you. Ever since that day, you've never cease to amaze me with your beauty, compassion, intelligence, and strength.

"Through the years, your unconditional love has inspired and intrigued me. Just hearing your voice and feeling your presence makes life so much more bearable.

"Cassie, I love you with all my heart, more than anything else in this world. And I want you to know that I always will." 

Cassie brushed back a tear and mouthed the words me, too. I smiled at her. Marco handed me the ring and Cassie was shaking slightly as I placed it on her finger. She looked into my eyes, and started speaking.

"Jake, there are so many things I see when I look you. I see a person who always puts others before himself, and does it without a second thought. I see a person who has strength and will to spare. I see the man that I love. 

"You've always been there for me and protected me, and I'm so grateful for that. I always feel safe when I'm in your arms."

"Jake, I don't think there's ever been a time when I've doubted you, or haven't trusted you. I don't know what I'd do if something ever happened to you. I want you to know that I'll never leave your side, and that my heart and soul is yours." 

I was close to tears myself as Cassie said this. Rachel handed Cassie the ring, and she slipped it on my finger, her touch leaving a sensation of my hand. The Reverend smiled down at us.

"You may kiss the bride," he said, but I had already lifted her veil and started kissing her. Cassie didn't hesitate to wrap her arms around my neck and the kiss me back. I could hear applause and cheering, and even a few people were laughing. Marco had to tap me on the shoulder twice. 

"Save that for tonight," he said, a big grin on his face. 

"Shut up, Marco," I replied. Marco just grinned wider.

"Congratulations, Jake," he said, and slapped me on the back. 

Rachel gave Cassie and me a quick hug, and then we went down the aisle, arm in arm. I could see mine and Cassie's mom both crying their eyes out, and our dads were smiling at us, like most everyone else was. Ax and Tobias smiled from their seats. They stood up. "Congratulations, you guys," said Tobias. I smiled at him.

"Thanks." Ax stood up as well.

"Congratulations, Prince Jake, Princess Cassie," he said, shaking my hand and nodding to Cassie. She laughed.

"You don't have to call me Princess, Ax," she told him. He smiled at her.

"Yes, Princess Cassie," he answered. Cassie rolled her eyes and looked at me.

"I'm starting to understand how you feel," she said, taking off her gloves. 

She didn't look so comfortable in her dress, either. I pulled her close to me again.

"This dress is killing me," she said. "Let's go change," I said, and she nodded gratefully.

**Chapter 3**  
_ (Cassie)_

After we changed into something more comfortable but still nice, Jake and I went back out to the reception.

Everyone had already started without us, but as soon as we walked in, we got a lot of hugs and congratulations and things like that. Ax staggered up to us.

"This liquid you call champagne is very delightful. It-" burp "bubbles all the way down," he said happily. Jake looked at me, then turned to Ax. I shook my head.

"I think you've had enough, Ax. Go get some coffee," said Jake, pointing in the direction of the waiter. Ax staggered off again. Rachel and Tobias walked over to us.

"What took you guys so long? It's time to cut the cake," she said, pulling us over to the three tiered white cake. 

She signaled for everyone to gather. Jake and I both cut small slices for each other, even though I was too happy to be hungry. 

People clapped and cheered, but I could still see Marco trying to restrain Ax from attacking the cake. We all held back our laughs and ate the cake, giving him the biggest piece. I saw Rachel and Tobias go off to the corner, and Rachel was frowning. Tobias walked away, and Rachel walked over to us. 

"What's wrong?" I asked. Rachel looked at me, a confused look on her face.

"Tobias said that he had a weird feeling about something," she said. Before I could answer, Marco pulled Jake and me to the front of the room. 

"Attention! Attention everyone! Hey, you, listen! I have a few things to say," he said loudly. 

Everyone turned their attention towards Marco and he cleared his throat.

"Ever since I can remember, Jake has been my best friend. Seriously, I've known this guy since before preschool. We were a team. Of course, I was the brains and he was the braun," he said, giving Jake a cocky grin. 

"Just kidding. Anyway, I remember the day when all that changed. A new girl came to our second grade class, and her name was Cassie," he said, looking at me. He continued.

"Well, I could never forget the look on Jake's face when she sat down next to us. I said hi, but all Jake could do was stutter and impersonate a ripe tomato." Jake looked a little embarrassed.

"I wasn't that bad," he mumbled. Marco continued. "After that day, Jake had it for Cassie, and Cassie had it for him, too. It was so adorable, even though it took them long enough to just admit it," he said with mock exasperation.

"I'll admit that I became a little jealous. They became really good friends. But soon after this, Rachel showed up, and putting up with her every day kept me pretty busy," he said. Everyone laughed. Rachel looked like she wanted to, but instead she just glared at him.

"Seriously, these two belong together. Cassie and I may be complete opposites, but she's a really great girl. Jake, besides being a little too serious, is a great guy. They deserve each other, and I couldn't think of a better couple," he finished. 

I had no idea Marco had that speech planned, and by the time he was done, I was in tears, and everyone was clapping loudly.

"That was so nice, Marco," I said, giving him a hug. Marco grinned at Jake wickedly.

"Wouldn't want to make you jealous," he said slyly. Jake just rolled his eyes, and gave Marco a quick embrace.

"Thanks, man," he said. Marco shrugged.

"I was just being sincere or something," he said modestly. It was getting late, and the caterer's were starting to pack up the leftovers. Rachel walked over to us.

"I have to go. I don't want to, but mom needs me in at 5:30 tomorrow," she said ruefully. Rachel worked at her mom's firm as a secretary. I smiled at her.

"Don't worry about it, thanks Rachel, for everything," I said. She grinned.

"You're welcome. Congratulations again," she said over her shoulder.

A few minutes later, Marco took Ax back to his scoop. Then our parents said their goodbyes, and left also. Soon, we were the only two people left at the church. Jake put his arms around me, and I sighed. "I'm so glad you're here," he whispered in my ear. I smiled and looked at him.

"I'm glad I'm here too," I said. Jake smiled and grabbed my hand.

"Let's go home."

**Chapter Four**  
_ (Jake)_

Cassie and I got in my car and I drove to our apartment, trying to concentrate on driving while and not stealing glances at Cassie. Just then I thought I saw something in the sky.

"What was that?" I asked her. She followed my gaze. "I didn't see anything," she answered. I looked again, and I didn't see anything either. I shrugged it off as nothing, and continued driving. 

We didn't live that far from my church, or from my parent's house. I pulled up to the building and Cassie and I walked inside. I unlocked the door to the apartment.

"Home sweet home," said Cassie, smiling. We had just moved our stuff in that past week, and there were boxes everywhere. It was a mess, but like Cassie said, it was home. 

I looked at Cassie and couldn't keep myself from smiling back at her. She was so beautiful. I pulled her close to me. 

"Thank you," I said. She looked at me curiously.

"For what?"

"For making me so happy," I said. Cassie pulled back to look at me. 

"I love you," she said softly. I kissed her, and lifted her clear off the floor, her soft curls brushing my face. I carried Cassie into our bedroom, and laid her on the bed. I was captivated by her face, her eyes, illuminated by the moon light.

"I love you too, Cassie," I said, kissing her. 

We made love, and with the night, all of my problems and fears seemed to disappear.

I woke up the next morning, and smiled when I saw Cassie lying next to me. I touched her soft skin, and she stirred a little and smiled in her sleep. I remembered when I thought I had lost her forever, and I was so glad she was with me. I couldn't bare to lose her again. 

I quietly got out of bed and went took a quick shower. By the time I was done, Cassie was awake and wearing a tank top and a pair of shorts. She smiled, and my heart skipped a beat.

"Good morning," she said. 

"You too, Cass," I answered, holding her in my arms and kissing her. It felt so good to hold her. My thoughts were interrupted as the door bell rang. I groaned. 

"Maybe they'll go away," said Cassie. The bell rang again. No such luck. We both sighed and walked to the door, and I opened it. 

Outside was Rachel, Marco, Tobias and Ax. They all had expectant looks on their faces, and Ax looked as if he were about to explode. 

"What do you want?" I asked, half agitated, half curious. Seeing the expression on mine and Cassie's faces, Marco looked apologetic.

"Sorry if we're, um, interrupting, which I know we are, but this is really important," he said. Rachel nodded.

"Really important," she agreed. 

"Huge," added Tobias. Now they had us interested. Cassie looked at them, confused.

"What is it?" she asked. Ax looked at us, and his eyes shining. 

"They're here. My people have come."

**Chapter Five**  
_ (Cassie)_

Jake and I pulled everyone inside the apartment and shut the door. Jake looked at Ax.

"When did they get here?" he asked.

"My people arrived at approximately 5:00 am this morning, about 5 of your hours ago," he replied. Marco didn't even bother telling him that it was everyone's time. 

"Where are they now? I mean, exactly," I added quickly. 

"I'm afraid their ship is in the meadow by Cassie's house. Fortunately, it is a small ship and crew, and they are currently hiding at my scoop in the woods. Your parents might have already spotted the ship, though," he told me. I took in a deep breath to clear my mind. It didn't help.

"So Cassie's parents already know about everything?" asked Jake, reading my mind. Rachel shook her head. 

"We haven't told anyone anything yet. I was driving past your house when I thought I saw something in the distance. When we found the ship, your parents weren't awake. As soon as I got Marco, Tobias, and Ax, we went to go check it out. It was the Andalites, and right now all they know about us is that we're the "Andalite Bandits" and that Ax is Elfangor's brother," she finished. 

"We need to go talk to them," said Jake urgently. Marco grabbed his arm.

"What we need to do is tell our parents about what's happening, Jake. The Andalites are here, and they're bound to find out anyway," he told him. Jake tensed up.

"What about Tom? What if he finds out somehow?" he asked. I grabbed his hand, and he relaxed.

"Don't worry, we'll meet at my house. It'll be safer," I said. Tobias nodded.

"I think I'll go back now. I don't really have any parents to tell," he said wistfully. Rachel touched his arm, and Tobias left. I think he was anxious to talk to the Andalites.

We spent the next few minutes calling our parents, and then we drove out to my farm. I was scared, but also a little excited. None of us really knew what to expect. We finally pulled up into my driveway. 

"Everyone's here already," commented Marco, looking at the other four cars in the driveway. 

We walked into the house to be greeted by nine very confused faces.

"What is this all about?" asked Rachel's mom.

"Is something wrong?" asked Marco's dad at the same time. Jake looked at them.

"Well, we do have something to tell you," he started. His father eyed at him curiously.

"What is it? And who is that?" he asked, pointing to Ax. Jake decided to answer the first question. They'd have to know this to understand who Ax was.

"For the past four years, all of us-" he gestured towards me, Rachel, Marco, and Ax "and Tobias have been fighting in a war," he began. Now the confused looks were even more confused. 

"What are you talking about?" asked my mom. I turned to her.

"Mom, Earth is under attack, and it has been for a while. Until now, we were the only humans who knew about it. Except for the Controllers," I added. Nora gave us all strange looks.

"I don't understand," she said. Marco looked at her.

"The Yeerks. They're parasites that take over people's brains, and use them for their own purposes. Anyone who has a Yeerk in their head is a Controller," he said. My dad cut in. 

"Have you all lost your minds?" he exclaimed. I looked at Jake, and he shook his head. 

"We didn't want to do this, but here goes," he said. He nodded towards the rest of us, and we began changing. 

All of us were thinking along the same lines, because we all morphed our least threatening and gross looking morphs. 

Rachel morphed Fluffer McKitty, Jake morphed Homer, Marco morphed Euclid, and I morphed a squirrel. Since Ax was already in human morph, he stayed like that. 

When the changes were done, I heard loud screams, and someone saying that they need to lie down. 

We morphed back as soon as possible, trying to make the morphs as weirdless as possible. I was the first one to finish, and everyone was staring at me.

"You're a monster who can turn in to domestic animals!" exclaimed my mom. It sounded kind of funny, but I shook my head. 

"No, I'm still Cassie, a human. I just have the power to change my form into any animal I want, we all do," I told her. 

"It's the only way we can fight them," added Rachel, as soon as she was done with her morph. 

Everyone calmed down a little, and we explained the rest to them. The Yeerk pool, the Andalites, the Chee, everything. By the time we were done, everyone's parents had run over to their child and hugged them.

"Why didn't you tell us? You could've been killed," said my mom. I shook my head. 

"We had no way of knowing if you were a Controller or not," I said. Jake's dad looked troubled.

"All this time I wondered why you've changed so much. I don't get how we could've missed it," he said to Nikki, and she nodded. My mother pointed to Ax, who was still standing off by himself. 

"Didn't he come to your wedding? Who is he?" she asked. 

"My name is Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill. I am an Andalite. Lite. Tuh," he said. 

"I thought Andalites were aliens," Rachel's mom commented. 

"He's in human morph right now," said Rachel. 

"Go ahead, Ax," said Jake. 

Ax nodded, and he slowly morphed back to his Andalite form.

We all had to physically restrain our parents from running out of the room, the whole house for that matter. Seeing how disturbed they were, Ax quickly morphed back to human.

"Me and my big mouth," muttered Rachel's mom. Just then Tobias flew in. 

{The Andalites want to see you} he said. Our parents stared at him. 

"That's Tobias. You just heard thought-speech," said Marco quickly. 

"We have to go," said Jake, walking towards the door.

Our parents watched us leave wordlessly, most likely in shock.

**Chapter Six**  
_ (Jake) _

We followed Tobias outside, and I could barely make out the small Andalite ship. Tobias lead us into the woods, where we morphed wolves to keep up with his fast pace. 

About fifteen minutes later, we finally made it to Ax's scoop. My wolf nose smelled five alien bodies close by. 

We demorphed quickly, and as soon as my eyes came back, I saw five Andalites staring at us in awe. 

{Elfangor actually did it. They really are humans} one of them said. A purplish Andalite turned towards him. I realized that she was a female. 

{Of course, Elfangor's son has told us this already} she replied impatiently. A different Andalite turned towards us. 

{Who is your leader?} Cassie gave my hand a comforting squeeze, and I stepped forward.

"My name's Jake. I guess I'm the leader," I said. The Andalite bowed to me. 

{I am War-Prince Vitoran. This is Warrior Ckorem, Warrior Xariiliur, Warrior Emerilia, and Warrior Orbrium} he said, nodding to each Andalite in turn.

{It is an honor to finally meet the humans who have eluded Visser Three for so long} said Vitoran, giving us an Andalite smile with his eyes. I shook his hand.

"Thank you.

{We have come to evaluate how far the Yeerks have gotten with the invasion of Earth. From what Elfangor's son has told us, it is very important that the invasion is stopped before they can infest anymore humans} he said. 

Before we could celebrate, the Andalite continued.

{Unfortunately, our forces have been spread thin throughout the galaxy, and it will take a few Earth months to gather our soldiers and train new ones. As of right now, you are all Warriors, including Aximili, and Jake is officially a Prince of War} he said. 

Rachel and Ax looked pleased. Cassie and Marco both looked hesitant. I was flattered, but I had a feeling Vitoran had something else to say. 

"I'm honored. But what else are you trying to say?" he asked tentatively. Vitoran looked somewhat guilty.

{You have all been fighting the Yeerks on Earth for many years, and have succeeded in slowing down the invasion. But none of you have had proper military training} he started. 

{It is vital that you at least know the fundamentals. Therefore, you will all be required to travel back to the Andalite homeworld to train immediately} the Andalite named Orbrium finished. Rachel stepped forward.

"I'll do it," she said quickly. Tobias joined her. 

{I will too} he said. Marco rolled his eyes.

"That's no big surprise. But we're talking about traveling to a completely different galaxy, Rachel," he said skeptically. Before Rachel could reply, Marco cut her off. 

"But if you guys are going, I will too," he finally said. 

{What about you, Warrior Aximili?} asked Ckorem. Ax turned both of his stalk eyes on me.

{I follow Prince Jake} he replied. I turned to face Cassie. 

"What do you think?" I asked her. I knew that Cassie was against this war, and that she probably didn't want to fight anymore. She sighed. 

"I don't like fighting, but I won't abandon you guys. I think we should go. Our families will understand," she said. I took her hand and she smiled a little.

"We'll leave as soon as possible."

To Be Continued...


End file.
